Harvest HAWK, a modular roll-on, roll-off weapons system for the KC-130J, completed Phase One testing at Naval Air Station (NAS) Patuxent River, Md., earlier this month and is now in California for required maintenance and additional testing, according to the Navy.
Harvest HAWK consists of a Fire Control Console in the aircraft’s cargo compartment, the Target Sight Sensor (TSS) mounted in the left under wing fuel tank and a launcher for four Hellfire missiles mounted on the left hand refueling pylon, the Navy said.
The KC-130J will undergo maintenance and further testing at Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division China Lake, Calif.
Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) is working a complementary effort to test and deploy the Standoff Precision Guided Munition (SOPGM) as a stand alone capability for Harvest HAWK. The 30mm cannon, which will be mounted in the left side troop door, has been deferred to a later block upgrade, the Navy said.
The Test Team, composed of personnel from Air Test and Evaluation Squadrons 20 (VX 20) and 23 (VX-23), Operational Test Squadron 1 (VX-1), Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 352 (VMGR-352), Lockheed Martin [LMT], and engineers from the Joint Attack Munitions Systems (JAMS) project office, NAVAIR AIR-5.1 Integrated Systems Evaluation, Experimentation, and Test (ISEET) department, and NAVAIR AIR 4.6 Human Systems department, conducted the tests during this phase of Harvest HAWK testing, the Navy said.
The Harvest HAWK equipped KC-130J from VMGR-352, “The Raiders” from Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Calif., arrived at NAS Patuxent River on March 17.
The first Harvest HAWK equipped KC-130J is scheduled to deploy by summer 2010 equipped with the TSS, Hellfire and SOPGM, according to the Navy.